


Fallen From Favour

by Cheryl0204



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste Knows, F/M, Hawk Moth Reveal, Hawk Moth is Gabriel Agreste, post-Mayura
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-13
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-17 15:11:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16976946
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cheryl0204/pseuds/Cheryl0204
Summary: Post Mayura, so don't expect Lila here yet ¯\_(ツ)_/¯Gabriel was thoroughly defeated by the five superheroes and had to retreat, but he realized that there's a bigger concern he needed to attend to. Meanwhile, what would Adrien be doing? Not attending Marinette's picnic, that's for sure.A somewhat angsty story in which Adrien has to deal with the revelation of his father being Hawkmoth. What should he do when his morals and duty clashes with his longing for his mother?





	1. Gabriel x Nathalie

_“Nathalie!”_

Gabriel’s anxious cries rung through the halls of the marble-white mansion. The sounds of clucking shoes echoed with each hurried step he made. He slammed in the buttons that lead to his lair. A cylindrical stand below his feet whirred and came to life. It rose steadily and brought him to the place that he had come to familiar himself with – a place where his alter ego lives. But this time, it’s not him anymore.

He tapped his feet anxiously. The room came into sight. Dust and rotting plants – that’s how he would have described the smell of his lair. Sure enough, Nathalie was there, but she was sprawled onto the ground. He rushed forward, and his shoulders dropped. “Nathalie?” He cradled her in his arms, and picked her up as gentle as carrying a sleeping child. Careful not to make any sudden movements, he brought her to his atelier.

Setting her down on the couch, Gabriel placed both of his hands on her shoulders. His eyes drooped and it dulled. _I made a mistake. I-, I shouldn’t have allowed this._ Grabbing a wet towel, he placed it on her forehead, hoping somehow she would wake up. And she did.

Nathalie coughed, and finally her eyes fluttered open. Gabriel, who was tending to her, sunk to his knees and heaved out a heavy sigh.

“Sir…” she blinked in confusion and pondered for a while. Then, her face scrunched up in disbelief. She remembered now. Her eyes lowered and she frowned at herself. She disobeyed his instructions to not use the peacock miraculous, even though Gabriel had specifically told her not to. That time, they were so close to getting their miraculous. All she ever wanted, was to keep him safe and achieve his goals.

Gabriel stared at her silently. This time, he must be angry. Her heart was in her mouth. “You can be mad at me, I won’t give any excuses-” she shook her head, “but what I-” She felt him nearing. Her muscles tensed and she shut her eyes. But then, warmth spread throughout her body. She opened her eyes to see Gabriel hugging her, his hands wrapping under her arms onto her shoulders gently. There was a bit of sadness, worry, guilt in his touch, but what masked it all, was blame. Not on her, but on himself.

She looked at him with concerned eyes, the wrinkles on his face multiplied, the crease on his forehead deepened. He seemed tired. She returned the hug and rested her forehead onto his shoulders.

“You look older, Gabriel,” she whispered into his ear.

“You shouldn’t have used the Miraculous” he muttered. Then he turned away and took a deep breath. “No- I mean-,” he let out a heavy sigh, “I’m sorry, Nathalie,” he gripped her shoulders. “I shouldn’t have let you do it. It- It was too dangerous.”

She pulled away and stared at his steel grey eyes. “I’d risk anything to make your wish come true.”

Yes, his wish. His wish for his wife to come back to life; his wish for everything to go back to how it once was, when the happy couple had a wonderful life with everything they could have possible had. They had fortune, they’ve reached the pinnacle of their career, and… and… they had a charming family. Two loving couples and one beautiful son, what more could they have asked for?

But, all of it was gone.

Emilie died, Gabriel became emotionally distant, his son? That poor kid. He didn’t even know what was happening to his life. Even Nathalie herself… She was satisfied enough with the employer-assistant relationship she had with Gabriel, as long as she can see him smiling, that was all she needed, but right now, no longer she felt cared for, not even as a friend.

Seeing him being the bright fashion designer he once was?

That, is her wish.

“Nathalie,” a lump began to form in Gabriel’s throat. Cold as he may be, he’s not without emotion. All these pain and suffering left him breathless. “I’ve done everything I can, Nathalie,” he buried his face in his hands. “I can’t do it anymore.”

“Sir-” Before she could talk any further, Gabriel clasped his hands with hers, effectively silencing her.

“You don’t have to convince me, Nathalie.” His voice came out heavy. “This is what I want now, for me to let go-” he fixed his eyes on her, his grey eyes glistening like the sun shining against the cement in the sidewalk, “and for you to be happy.”

He sighed as if he was finally able to let out all of his doubts and frustration in peace. The evening sky dazzled in streaks of golden, and glistening rays shone through the window. It fixed the mood perfectly. Nathalie’s hands felt warm in his.

“For once, I want you to stay with me. You were always there, and- and I took you for granted and never looked at you properly.”

Nathalie, clearly appalled at his words, almost felt like she wanted to break down sobbing. She found her situation amusing. Things could be better, but this is the best she could ever hope for.

Gabriel pulled her in, and they shared a kiss under the warm evening glow, but all while unbeknownst to them, Adrien had been eavesdropping from them behind the door all along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- This is post-Mayura, if you haven't noticed already  
> \- It's my first attempt at this, second draft, it would be great if constructive criticism can be left in the comments, I'd appreciate it.  
> \- I procrastinate  
> \- Thank you if you made it this far  
> \- Next chapter is going to be Adrien being a broken soul


	2. Adrien x Plagg

“Father?” Adrien gasped.

Gabriel pulled away with a jolt from Nathalie, their seemingly magical night broken away by appearance of his own son. “Adrien, what are you-“

The rest of the sentence blurred. His mind couldn’t piece together the information from all of these. He was suddenly dizzy. Adrien felt himself stepping back, as if to run away from all of this.

All this time, Ladybug was right. Gabriel was always the top of the list of all suspects. Subtle hints added more fuel to believe that his father was Hawkmoth. When the book containing information about the legendary heroes was lost, Gabriel teemed with anger, so much that he thrashed his whole room, breaking statues and furniture apart, even Adrien’s drawing which remained spotless in his room throughout the whole year had been thrown onto the ground like a useless ragdoll. Adrien could still remember the sounds of crashing and thrashing in the room. He had never been so furious before. It made Adrien feel so bad for the next few weeks that he declined any chance to hang out with his friends, out of fear of displeasing his own father. What more, the butterfly patterns in the house, the logo on his company’s products, the way he eyed both Adrien’s and Chat Noir’s rings. He must’ve known that the rings had something more than meets the eye.

No, he didn’t seem interested in the Miraculous, he seemed _invested_ in them.

Suspicion began to arouse in the back of Adrien’s mind when Gabriel didn’t get akumatized during the last battle. Why not? His father was never optimistic with everything that happened. Hawkmoth had no reason to not akumatize him, even then, how is he able to resist the akumas when apparently even the Gorilla was akumatized?

_“The second mircaculous that Master Fu lost,” Ladybug had said, “-was a peacock!” Chat Noir continued._

 

Right before Adrien scurried over to the Marinette’s picnic, he decided to find out about the truth once and for all. He inched his way to his father’s atelier, where the portrait of his mother was situated.

“Hurry, Plagg, he’s going to be here any moment,” Adrien tapped his fingers against the safe. Plagg phased through the steel black safe, and with a click, it swung open.

“You’re being too jumpy,” he poked out his head. “Told you it was all junk and scraps.”

Adrien scanned through the safe with his finger pointed, the brooch that looked like a peacock, _it’s gone_. He looked another corner, and his eyes were nailed onto the dusty leather book. “This is it,” he muttered as he pushed Plagg out of the way to grab it.

The binding was still sturdy, even though it seemed old and ancient. The leather brushed against his skin and he opened the book. His hands trembled as he scoured each brown page, filled with sketches and symbols that looked like they could readily burst out from the page and cast cursed spells on him. He halted at a creased page that portrayed the Peacock miraculous. He hovered his finger above the page.

_Found it._

It was a depiction of the peacock miraculous and portraits of the holder. He examined the miraculous and remembered the peacock miraculous from the safe before.

 _“This must be it,”_ his eyebrows knitted. 

Adrien’s focus was divided a creak from the ceiling. The podium was whirring, and it began to descend. _No more time to look_ , he thought. He shoved the book back into the safe and shut the painting swiftly. “Plagg, hide,” he called. And as usual, Plagg flew into his blazer and remained hidden there. Adrien skulked along the walls and hid behind the door, just in time before Gabriel’s eyes came through the ceiling. He stuck himself against the door, mind bustling with questions as to why he had a thing that could go up and down like that.

His ears listened intently on what might go on.

“Sir…” a weak voice groaned.

_Nathalie? What is she doing up there?_

Adrien cautiously peeked from behind the door.

 _Father’s here too?_ Then, something more interesting caught his attention. _The peacock miraculous? With Nathalie?_

“You can be mad at me, I won’t give any excuses,” she shook her head as if to emphasize her point. “But what I-” she stopped when Gabriel gave her a hug.

He quickly turned back.

“You shouldn’t have used the Miraculous,” his father said.

He started to tune out their voices.

 _Is it, is he…?_ No, impossible. _How could he?_

How… _could he?_

Everything is now laid down before him. All of the mysteries have their answers. Reality struck him, and it struck him hard and rendered him breathless. _This can’t be._

 

“Why?” Adrien’s voice oozed with betrayal like an open wound. It left the two adults staring at him blankly. He backed away from the door. One steps, two steps, and he broke out sprinting. He stormed out of the house and met with the cold evening breeze. He shuddered, yet his legs were still moving. Each footstep brought him further and further away from his house. He squeezed his eyes shut, but the voices in his head isn’t that easy to shut down. It just wouldn’t stop.

Plagg slung out of Adrien’s blazer, keeping his pace steadily along with Adrien’s. If Plagg had eyebrows, he sure looked like he was scowling with a brooding face. He drifted alongside him without muttering a single word – which was quite out of character for him, despite the situation. At this moment, all Adrien needs is time to sort things out quietly.

Adrien’s eyes were wet with tears. He burst out in silent sobs, something that he hadn’t done for a long time since his mother’s disappearance. It rolled down in cheeks and sunk into his mouth. It tasted bitter. So bitter.

He turned from corner to corner, his legs carrying him as fast as they could go. He faced an intersection, and he stopped. His green eyes were muddied, and they wandered from left to right, then right to left. He had no idea where he was headed, or what he should do, so he just- _stopped._

His legs were cemented onto the ground, he didn’t move an inch. He stared long and hard into the distance.

Plagg lingered beside him, his eyes were filled with worry. If he’s not strong enough… Plagg shook that thought out of his mind. _He has to be. He’s the best owner I’ve had, he’s not like the other owners._

_He won’t be._

 

Time ticked by.

“Let’s go, Plagg” Adrien finally muttered. His voice was detached but calm.

Plagg was shaken by the sudden voice.

“To- Uh, where?

He trudged along the sidewalk. “Where we’ve always belonged.”

Turning a corner, Plagg found his partner and himself in an abandoned alley.

 

Adrien always felt like the alleyways was safe. As Chat Noir, he would often pass through these places to find Ladybug. It wasn’t homely as in a place you could live in forever, but a place where you felt safe and included, where no one else could find you. It reeked of sour food and dirty drains, but it also reeked of familiarity.

 _Homeless_ , that’s what he is. A homeless alley cat, waiting to be found by someone, and eventually belong somewhere, where he could be himself. People coo and give them rubs on the head, feed them with tuna and canned food, but no one ever thought of bringing them back home. No one cared to think of their past, or their future. This is what he was.

Growing up, his father only allowed him to act a certain way, shaping him, desperately trying to shove him into a mold that he could never fit into. Being flirty with Ladybug? He just wanted to be affirmed, not as Adrien Agreste the teen model, but as someone who can be weird, and well, _imperfect_. He didn’t want fans who love him for façade, but someone who can love him for being someone who can let loose everything, someone who can love him for being childish and immature, _someone who didn’t care, and just loved him for being him._

Well, not even the perfect Ladybug could love him.

His fists were clenched in a tight grip, and slumping against the walls, he sank to the ground.

“Plagg,” he sighed and wrapped his arms around his knees. “I just-” He wanted to scream as loud as his lungs allowed, scream until eventually the sky could be shaken and respond to his cries, but he knew he was insignificant. He couldn’t.

All the memories of his previous fights flashed inside his mind. They were brawling for his attention. Scenes where Hawkmoth hurt people, scenes where Ladybug almost left his side, and the scene where Hawkmoth showed up in public for the first time, and proved that he would not relent to get anything he desires, even if it means to put Adrien’s life at stake.

In contrast, there’s his father. The person who kept Adrien’s whole life from him, the person who claimed to love his mother, and yet instead of showing more affection to his son, he hid himself away from his life, making him feel like instead of losing his mother, he lost both of his parents, and he was the person who showed up in public for good, and embraced his son like nothing had ever happened, and… _he was the person who hurt him so much, but nonetheless he tried to please him._

And Nathalie, _why?_

Their whole-new relationship was one thing, working for his father was another, _but allowing his father to harm others, even to the extent of turning into Hawkmoth’s accomplice?_

It’s too surreal. The Gabriel he knew…

Adrien remembered that Plagg was there with him.

His looked at Plagg again. “I just- I just don’t know,” his gaze faltered. He hugged his knees and buried his head.

Adrien looked weary under the yellow flickering street lights. Time drained on. The air grew heavy and dense. He seemed to have cooled down along with the temperature.

Plagg had been sitting beside him for the whole time, unabashed by the stench and the decreasing temperature. He’d been holding in something he really wanted to say.

“Adrien,” he said, “would you like some camembert?”

Adrien giggled weakly, then lifted his head. “Thanks Plagg,” he sighed, “but no thanks.”

He smiled at last, that’s… something worth celebrating. But taking a look at this situation, not even camembert had the power to ease his pain.

“It’s okay, Plagg,” Adrien stood up and. “I’m fine,” he dusted himself. “Maybe, I just need someone to talk to. Mind giving me a hand?”

 

“Plagg, claws out!” Adrien flashed his ring and transformed into the hero Adrien could never be – Chat Noir. He donned a skin-tight black cat suit with faux cat ears attached to his blond hair and a black belt circling his waist that drifted in the sky whenever he leaped.

 _I hope Marinette’s not upset at me for not going to her picnic,_ he thought, as he flitted from roof to roof, to Paris’ famous patisserie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes:  
> \- I decided to go with Chat Noir, since it's Marichat, not Maricat.  
> \- Forgive my mistakes  
> \- Thank you very much  
> \- Expect reaallyyy slow chapters

**Author's Note:**

> -This is post-Mayura, if you haven't noticed already  
> -It's my first attempt at this, second draft, it would be great if constructive criticism can be left in the comments, I'd appreciate it.  
> -I procrastinate  
> -Thank you if you made it this far  
> -next chapter is going to be Adrien being a broken soul


End file.
